Feb 4, 2013

A rich and creamy Italian rice dish made with butternut squash puree, white wine, Parmigiano-Reggiano and topped with a little fresh arugula.

Happy Monday! Today I'm in chilly Minneapolis attending an
event for Target. They put together a fun agenda for members of the
Target Inner Circle which I'll be sharing this week, you can follow my Instagram to see what I'm up to today.

This weekend I remade one of my older recipes with meatless Monday in mind, and updated the photos because this is such a great dish, but the photos didn't do it justice.

Making risotto is a labor of love, because you have to be patient, stirring the rice and adding more broth a little at a time, but in the end you get a delicious restaurant quality dish that you can proudly say you made yourself, without all the added butter you would get if you ate this dish out. It's also really filling, one serving will fill you up. If you wish serve it with a salad on the side and call it a meal.

This also makes a great side dish to fish or chicken, I would make the serving size 1/2 cup as a side dish.

I started with some homemade squash puree which I simply made by boiling the butternut squash in broth or water, then pureeing in the blender. You can use the rest for some Spaghetti with Creamy Butternut Leek Pasta later in the week.

I like to keep a good cheese such as Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano-Reggiano on hand and grate it myself when I need it. A good cheese has an intense flavor you just can't get from the grated parmesan cheese sold on the shelves of the supermarket.

In a large saucepan, heat broth and butternut squash puree over medium-high heat. When it boils, reduce heat to a simmer and maintain over low heat, taste for salt and adjust as needed.

In a large heavy saucepan over medium heat, heat oil or butter until melted. Add shallots, garlic and rice; saute until the rice is well coated with oil or butter, about 3 minutes. Add the wine and sage and stir until it is absorbed.

Add a ladleful of the simmering stock; wait until it is absorbed before adding another ladleful stirring gently and almost constantly. Stirring loosens the starch molecules from the outside of the rice grains into the surrounding liquid, creating a smooth creamy-textured liquid.

Continue this process until the rice is creamy, tender to the bite, but slightly firm in the center and all the stock is used, about 25-30 minutes from the time you started. When all the liquid is absorbed, stir in the grated cheese and remove from heat.

95 comments
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Oh that looks so good. My daughter makes this all the time, but has yet to make it for good ole mom, and she keeps telling me she will, so I asked her for the recipe and it's always okay mom I will dig it out and give it to you, yeah right, lol! So now I have the recipe, thanks so much for sharing this.

This was my first time ever making risotto and my husband is NOT a fan of butternut squash. The odds were against me but the man cleared his plate and then asked for more to pack in his lunch for work tomorrow. Delicious!

To make squash puree I just bake, boil, or microwave the squash until tender peel it then put it in the blender/food processor until it is well blended. Does anyone think you could use couscous instead of the arb. rice?

This was my first attempt at risotto and it was delicious! I'm not sure if I did something wrong in the process, though, because I ended up with 4 cups of risotto. I followed your recipe except for using rubbed sage instead of chopped sage leaves. It was very, very good. Thanks for another great recipe!

I made this last night and my "meat only" boyfriend loved it! I didn't have Butternut Squash Soup on hand, so I just roasted one at 400 degrees in the oven, scooped out the flesh and mashed with a fork. It was perfect!

I made this last night and it was delicious instead of sage I used fresh basil and onion instead of shallots (i forgot to buy shallots at the store) either way it came out so delicious! I felt like the nutrition info on this was too good to be true! I made sure to eat a small portion in case but that was very difficult ha! yummy

Giada makes a recipe like this. The only difference is a little vanilla which is oh so good. I prefer to roast my squash though and add the chunks in when the risotto is cooked, just gives it more texture. So very yummy! Nice to know the points!For those looking for a meat pairing, we usually have this with pork.

Gina,I love LOVE LOVE everything you post. Your website has really helped me look at cooking in a different, more healthy way. I live in the south and everything is cooked in heavy butter and bacon grease. I have used many of your methods to change my family's traditional fattening recipes to healthy alternatives. My 3 and 4 year old even approve :) I have attempted (many times) to make risotto and fail miserably. I'm going to follow your recipe exactly and see what happens. Any additional tips for a girl that is terrible at making risotto?Thanks Gina!!

I love this recipe! I make it with double the butternut squash! My husband, who claims he does not like squash, ate this and said "yum, what's in this?" - Success!!! He also loved your spaghetti squash boats, so maybe I am making a squash lover out of him with your fabulous recipes! - Emily

Y'all. I made this last night and it is ridiculous. No taste sacrifice with this dish! Rich, cheesy, creamy-goodness taste. Wholesome, nutritious, and SKINNY ingredients. It really wasn't that hard to make. Ladling in the broth and stirring constantly was kind of therapeutic honestly. Thank you Gina, I wouldn't be able to do weight watchers without you!!

I've made this twice, the first time with butternut squash and I just made it with pumpkin puree; it is also delicious! My only recommendation (something you may want to add to the recipe instructions) is that both times I've made it I ended up using almost 4 cups of stock + the 1 cup of puree in order to get it to the right tenderness. I even used the same brand of rice as in the picture above.

I made this for dinner tonight and it was absolutely wonderful! It took a great amount of self-control to keep from eating the entire thing. It was easy to make and I even put my extra portions of homemade butternut squash puree in the freezer for next time!

Hi! I just searched "Paleo" on your site and noticed a lot of recipes (including this one) are listed as being paleo when they are not, and really couldn't be as far as I can tell with just a minor adjustment. I was just wondering if you had any suggestions on how to make this paleo or if it was a mistake. thanks!

This really turned out delicious! I found that I was out of sage, so I added in some diced scallions right at the end. Love the addition of the arugula as a garnish- gives you a nice little spicy bite!

The one-cup serving was very filling, and the risotto is so delicious it seems that it would have 500 more calories than it does! This recipe is a winner, and I will definitely make again!

Absolutely delicious! I usually use 4 cups water per 1 cup rice and after trying this recipe with only 3, I will definitely do it with 4 next time. That is the only thing I would change. I didn't even have all of the ingredients (just the main ones) and it was STILL amazing! I used tyme, yum!

Target sells frozen butternut squash already peeled and cut up in "steam and serve" bags--it worked great. The recipe was delicious as is, but I folded in some leftover shredded roasted chicken and a few toasted pinenuts--worked out great and made all that stirring worthwhile.